Convicted Easton Man Asks Court For Different Attorney

An Easton man convicted last week of attempted homicide and other charges stemming from a Dec. 21 attack in Wilson has filed motions asking for the court to appoint another attorney to represent him.

William Ehrie, 35, who is lodged in Northampton County Prison, says in his petition that he applied for an attorney from the county's public defender office on Dec. 21.

On Dec. 23, attorney Gary Asteak was appointed to represent him. On April 7, another of the attorneys in the office, Bruce Briody, got his case, and then, on April 16, Assistant Public Defender Richard Jacobs was assigned by the office to represent him.

Jacobs represented Ehrie at his trial before President Judge Alfred T. Williams Jr. However, Ehrie says Jacobs did not interview him until May 25 and had no further contact with him until the trial, with the exception of a brief conference on July 2, when he told Ehrie his trial was scheduled for the next week.

Ehrie also says Jacobs refused his request to file motions to dismiss the charges.

He says that as a result, he was deprived of his right to a fair trial, and he wants the court to appoint another attorney to represent him.

Saying he has no wages, except the $40 a month he makes at a prison job, and no other assets, Ehrie also says he wants to proceed as a pauper and wants the notes of the trial transcribed.